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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. net — for catching
  3. lean — thin
  4. degree — from a university
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. lean — to bend
  8. degree — an amount
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. land — to come down
  11. degree — temperature
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. net — in sport
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. tube — the underground
  17. sharp — clever
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. land — a country
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. tube — a container
  22. land — ground
  23. wound — an injury
  24. net — after costs

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com